A former Springfield native, Robert H. Margist, who served in the Cold War as a Nike-Hercules Missile Repair Technician, died Aug. 17. He was 81, according to legacy.com.

The Nike-Hercules Missile was used in Germany to counter an airborne threat from the Soviet Union.

Mr. Margist was born in Philadelphia but grew up in Springfield, graduating from Monsignor Bonner High School in 1958 with honors in Intramural Sports and Band.

The Newark, Delaware resident was stationed in Kaiseslautern, Germany while the Berlin Wall was being erected. He retired from the U.S. Army after five years of service as a 1^st Lieutenant.

He worked as a Machine Repairman at the Scott Paper Company in Chester for 12 years.

He then joined his brother James Margist in a partnership running “The Wooden Nickel” restaurant in New Castle, Delaware, where he was a chef and co-owner.

He was later employed as a chef at the Philadelphia Country Club, the Mountain Lake Corporation in Florida, and the Kittansett Country Club in Marion, Massachusetts.

He returned to Newark, Delaware to assist his mother, working at the Delaware Department of Recreation before retiring in 2004. He was a lifelong member of the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars,

This U.S. Army film tells the history and story of the Nike-Hercules Missile.

Enjoy this virtual tour of The Philadelphia Country Club where Mr. Margist worked as a chef.